Rating:
6 votes

UP - South Street Arch

McHenry County, Illinois

Photos 

West Face

The bridge was originally built by the Chicago, St. Paul and Fond du Lac Railroad, later acquired by the Chicago & Northwestern. It appears that the bridge was widened in 1897 to accomodate a second track.

Photo taken by J.R. Manning in July 2010

Enlarge

BH Photo #169880

Map 

Street View 

Description 

Rare Heliocoidal (or "spiral") Arch, built in 1867 and widened in 1897 for a second track by the C&NW.

Facts 

Overview
Stone arch bridge over South Street on Union Pacific Railroad
Location
Woodstock, McHenry County, Illinois
Status
Open to traffic
History
Built 1867, Widened 1897
Railroads
- Chicago & North Western Railway (CNW)
- Chicago, St. Paul & Fond du Lac Railroad (CStP&FdL)
- Union Pacific Railroad (UP)
Design
Rare Heliocoidal (or "spiral") Arch, built in 1867 by the Chicago, St. Paul and Fond du Lac Railroad, later aquired by the Chicago & Northwestern, which was acquired by the UPRR in 1995.
Dimensions
Span length: 16.0 ft.
Total length: 16.0 ft.
Approximate latitude, longitude
+42.31285, -88.44350   (decimal degrees)
42°18'46" N, 88°26'37" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/381038/4685521 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Woodstock
Inventory number
BH 45671 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

19th Century (8,780)
Arch (12,688)
Built 1867 (73)
Built during 1860s (645)
Chicago & North Western Railway (1,452)
Chicago, St. Paul & Fond du Lac Railroad (1)
Deck arch (11,923)
Have street view (29,323)
Helicoidal Skew Arch (9)
Illinois (4,947)
 McHenry County, Illinois (34)
Open (41,016)
Owned by railroad (13,601)
Railroad (16,559)
Span length under 25 feet (7,119)
Stone arch (3,298)
Total length under 25 feet (2,606)
Union Pacific Railroad (2,481)
Woodstock, Illinois (2)

Update Log 

  • November 4, 2021: New photo from Geoff Hubbs
  • July 16, 2018: New photos from John Marvig
  • May 8, 2015: Updated by Luke: Added category "Helicoidal Arch"
  • October 9, 2013: New Street View added by J.P.
  • September 16, 2012: Updated by Luke Harden: Added categories "Union Pacific Railroad", "Chicago & North Western Railway"
  • July 18, 2010: Added by J.R. Manning

Sources 

  • J.R. Manning - thekitchenguy [at] sbcglobal [dot] net
  • J.P. - wildcatjon2000 [at] gmail [dot] com
  • John Marvig - marvigj27 [at] gmail [dot] com
  • Geoff Hubbs
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Comments 

South Street Arch
Posted July 19, 2010, by Matthew Lohry (matthewlohry [at] yahoo [dot] com)

The 7th Street Improvement Arches in St. Paul, MN, also uses this helicoidal arch design. This bridge has two spans rather than one.

South Street Arch
Posted July 18, 2010, by J.R. Manning (thekitchenguy [at] sbcglobal [dot] net)

I found this gem in Woodstock, Illinois while I was looking for something else. Note the heliocoidal arch construction - I've never seen anything like this before.